After the Civil War ended, Black communities everywhere were in a frenzy. We hurried to get educated, create our own businesses, and run for public office. We held a lot of power, especially locally.
White southerners—some of them ex-Confederate soldiers who wanted to see us dead or back in slavery—voted in their candidates, too. Like today’s MAGA supporters, they had one thing on their minds: ensuring that any political power we had was taken away.
These politicians attached provisions to bills that took away all we’d worked for, but they lost every single time. They tried repeatedly to stop us, even resorting to violence and lynching. Then came 1879. White southerners voted in their MAGA forefathers, and they took over Congress.
The president vetoed their bills, so they got active, refusing to work until the protections for Black people were removed. They failed again. Other politicians and voters let them know extremism in government wasn’t going to fly.
Remember that it only takes a few of us to turn the tide, especially when we work locally and support each other. Learn history. Support organizations that support us. And above all, protect each other from racists who want to see us dead.